Brand new animal kitchen facilities at Twycross Zoo, allowing its keepers to prepare food for all of the zoo’s animals, were officially opened on Wednesday 29 July.

Thanks to a generous donation, the zoo was able to refurbish one of its site buildings to include multiple large sinks, chopping areas, walk-in fridges and freezers to create a large central kitchen area for all animal food preparation that takes place at the zoo.

Twycross Zoo is home to more than 500 animals, every single one of which has a specialised diet. Many of the animals are native to countries from all over the world and can often only eat certain types of food. Their diet can also vary depending on their age, health conditions and whether they are pregnant, meaning it can take keepers up to two hours a day to prepare meals for all the animals.

Every year the zoo uses more than 80 tonnes of food to feed its animals, ranging from meat and fish, to fruit and vegetables, grass, hay and special pellet feeds, and costing up to nearly £200,000. Thanks to a kind donation from Dr Mary-Lorraine Hughes, its former Chair of Trustees, Twycross Zoo now has facilities to process large quantities of food, including donations from Ocado grocers and local suppliers of grass and hay.

Dr Charlotte Macdonald, Director of Life Sciences says, “Twycross Zoo is a charity, so we rely heavily on our visitors and donors in order to maintain the world class care of our animals. We are incredibly grateful for this generous donation towards the refurbishment of our animal kitchen facilities, and to those donors who contribute directly to the dietary needs of our animals. This invaluable financial support helps to keep our animals healthy and in great condition.”